Postcard from Paris: December 2006 - The Christmas Invasion
by Michael Connor, 18 December 2006
For ages, it was difficult to find foreign perfumes in France. You could get Aqua di Parma, while Amin Kadir near St Sulpice quietly pushed Santa Maria Novella’s products to a cult clientele. Even that bastion of Anglophilia in the capital, Old England, was up until recently selling Creed as a British brand, even though Oliver Creed’s ancestors took the Enlightenment version of the Eurostar over 200 years ago.
For Christmas 2006, however, some of the biggest stories have been the arrival of non-French perfume houses in the heart of Paris.
The biggest fanfare goes to Bond No 9, which arrives in Sephora Champs-Elysees just in time for the shopping season. Not just a foreign perfume house, but - gasp - an American perfume house! And not only an American perfume house, but - gasp! - one dedicated to immortalising in scent New York City, surely Paris’ successor to the title “Capital of the World.”
23 of Bond No. 9’s 26 scents, hymning neighbourhoods like Gramercy Park, Little Italy and Bleecker Street hit the shelves this month. Parisians are inordinately fond of NYC - they’ll be pleased to hear that Bond’s founder, Laurice Rahmé, launched the line in tribute to the great (French) scents of the 1920s and 30s.
Also opening this winter is traditional English perfumer Penhaligon’s first Paris boutique (pictured above). Based on 209 rue St Honoré, has all the elements you’d expect from this historic house - lovely old leather armchairs, oriental rugs, apocathary-style shelving. All the Penhaligons’s classics like Bluebell, Blenheim Bouquet and Hamman Bouquet are here as well as contemporary scents like Quercus, Opus 1870 and Malabah.
It’s no surprise Penhaligon’s should open up here. Paris is gripped by one of its regular bouts of Anglophilia: Jo Malone’s concession in the Bon Marché department store is very busy (I like her fig & cassis: Dare I say it, better than France’s great Philosykos and Premier Figuier?). London lingerie specialist Agent Provocateur is also reported to be doing extremely well in Printemps - who would have thought that the Brits would ever sell perfume and sexy underwear to the Frenchies?
Even the Aussies are getting in on the act. Skincare brand Aesop has been a fixture for France’s fashion crowd for a few years, thanks to designer store Colette (always a first stop for Parisians looking for international scents). This month Aesop launches its second scent, Mystra, a Byzantium-influenced blend of incense and resin notes.
Australians invoking Byzantium, Les rosbifs selling scents and scanties to the French, New Yorkers taking over the Champs-Elysees... what’s a self-respecting French perfume house to do?
One answer is consolidate: Do what you’re good at, or stick to your knitting, as my old gran used to say. Frederic Malle’s Editions de Parfum, probably the finest of France’s “new niche” houses, takes its time over new releases. Not for M Malle the endless parade of summer editions and Christmas one-offs: Building a tradition takes time. Malle has released just one scent in the past 12 months - the magnificent Carnal Flower, which took two years to perfect. He’s not exactly in a hurry to rush out accessories, either, but when he does you can bet they’re the best (and, sadly, the most expensive) around. 2006 saw a series of beurres exquis (please don’t say “exquisite butter”), an ultra-rich perfumed body cream in industrial-arty bakelite containers. Carnal Flower is represented, along with Iris Poudre, Une Fleur de Cassie and his earthy-but-minimalist Une Rose. I’ve tried the latter on my hand and it captures the complexity and longevity of this compelling scent beautifully. At around 110 a tub, this is probably the most eyebrow-raising use of beurre since the Last Tango in Paris.
Guerlain’s recent history has been patchy, what with rumours of formula changes and the release of a series of lacklustre scents, but perhaps inspired by the re-opening last year of its flagship boutique on the Champs-Elysees, the venerable house appears to be finding its feet again.
2006’s Insolence was a good, solid scent, while re-releases in the exclusive “Parisiennes” collection like Derby and Liu demonstrated how fine Guerlain could be. Sadly, certain other re-releases from the Parisian stable showed that the house went through a very uninspired patch: And why do Purple Fantasy and Philtre d’Amour merit a re-release when Coriolan languishes in the where-are-they-now file?
Sometimes, though, one doesn’t mind special edition perfumes. Guerlain’s Habit Rouge Eau de Parfum, which added fashionable oud to the sparkling classic, was an unqualified success and deserves to join the permanent collection.
This winter, though, sees a special edition which will have half of Basenotes’ male readers booking tickets for Paris, and the other half heading for the hills: Vetiver Extreme.
Presented in a similar bottle to the main line Vetiver scent, though with a darker green juice, this is a revelation - and answered prayer to fans of this scent who suspect, like me, that the current edition is a pale shadow of its former self. It opens with a blast of dry tobacco and lush, damp grass, before taking a distinctive mineral note, partly wet stone and partly the scent of oyster shells. The drydown is masculine, darkest green, brooding - it’s somewhere between the original vetiver and Frederic Malle’s peerless Vetiver Extraordinaire. I couldn’t stop sniffing my wrist after trying this one: Perfume perfection for around 80 euros for 100ml, available in Guerlain boutiques.
Another way to respond to challenges from overseas is to innovate. France has a long tradition of experimental “niche” houses and perfumer Stéphanie de Saint-Aignan is the latest addition to this line.
Available exclusively at Printemps department store, Saint-Aignan’s perfumes are said to be inspired by travel notebooks, dreams and literature. The line has a globetrotting feel, with names like Berberiades and Un The au Sahara, as well as a poetic touch (‘Embruns d’Ambre’, ‘Voleur de Ciels’).
If bottles are minimalist, the scents are extravagant. Tobacco Mucho opens with heady cigar and leather: Forget Creed’s New Tabarome, this is a direct update of the ancient, classic Tabarome, with its whiff of smoky clubs and polished wood. Over time - days, indeed - it ripens into a warmer, ambery scent with a feminine touch. Voleur de Ciels has an airy, metallic, ultra-contemporary feel that places it in the family of Comme des Garcons Odeur 53 and Nickel’s Enemy Pour Homme: There’s supposedly warm leather and ‘forgotten flowers’ in there too, but this might be an example of Mme Saint-Aignan’s poetic license.
Amande Honorable is almost mainstream - green lime blossom, fresh almonds and musk, with the sugared almond “dragées” handed out to guests at French weddings lending a nostalgic touch. Of all the scents from the house, this one is flying off the shelves fastest. It’s a limited edition line, so catch it while you can.
My favourite in the collection is Un thé au Sahara, a kind of perfume tableau vivant, a travelling caravan of sweet mint tea, smoky incense, woods and leather. Fans of Serge Lutens’ oriental exquisites will adore this one, though it has a fresher, more contemporary feel than Lutens heavy-lidded creations.
Also in the line is Berberiades (saffron, spice, jasmine), Embruns d’Ambre (oceanic, ambergris) and Le Pot aux Roses (violet, iris and, uh, rose). Stéphanie de Saint-Aignan plans to release one new scent a year and a Paris boutique is planned. (30 ml for 50 euros, 50 ml for 80 euros, from Printemps Paris.)
Joyeux Noël to all Basenotes readers!
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